Touchdown!

That's what you'll make if you take home this vintage leather football helmet from our trove.

Up through the 1890s, football players had no protection against concussions, other than growing out their hair to provide some padding against head-on collisions. Various sources credit either football player George Barclay or United States Naval Academy Midshipman Joseph M. Reeves with the creation of a leather helmet as a protective device. By the 1910s, the helmet had increased padding and holes in the earflaps to allow players to hear each other on the field.

A significant step in safety was the invention of a system of internal straps by University of Illinois football coach Robert Carl Zuppke in 1917. The straps absorbed and distributed the impact, plus allowed better ventilation. Rawlings, the manufacturer of this helmet, was one of the first companies to adopt what was known as the "ZH" or Zuppke helmet. 

Rawlings was founded in Saint Louis,Missouri in 1887 by brothers George and Alfred Rawlings. Although originally the company sold goods for a wide variety of sports, including baseball, tennis, and football, today they are mainly specialize in softball and baseball gear and equipment.

In 1939, the John T. Riddell Company, a Chicago sporting goods firm, introduced the first plastic helmet. Although the initial helmets could shatter on impact, Riddell quickly improved the design, The plastic helmets were lighter, waterproof, and allowed more padding and cushioning. A decade later the National Football League officially adopted plastic helmets (the delay was caused in part by the scarcity of plastics during WWII).

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

16816-15

All Dress(er)ed Up!

That is just what your bedroom will be with the addition of this distinguished and desirable vintage dresser. Of handsome honey-toned wood, it is an excellent example of American mid-century modern design.

Inside one of the many drawers is the mark of Link-Taylor, which specialized in fine quality bedroom and dining room furniture, beginning in 1950. 

In 1903, the Dixie- Elk Furniture Company was established in Lexington, North Carolina. Beginning in the 1950s, the company decided to divide into four companies, each with its own specialty and product lines. These companies were: Dixie, which made mid-priced bedroom and dining room furnishings; Henry Link, specializing in girls' bedroom furniture; Young Hinkle, a boys' bedroom furniture manufacturer; and Link-Taylor, which focused on luxury bedroom and dining room furniture. Link-Tayor was known for its solid wood furniture made by skilled craftsmen. In addition to traditional styles, Link-Taylor also produced lines appealing to contemporary tastes and its mid-century modern furniture is highly sought after. In 1987, Masco Corporation bought and merged the four companies into Lexington Furniture Industries. 

Solid and sturdy, this attractive vintage bureau just needs a little polish and tender loving care to bring it back to its original beauty.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly! 

16020-9

Charming Children's Chinoiserie

This fantastic set of antique faux bamboo doll furniture reflects the European fascination with the far East after trade opened with China and Japan in the 1860s. “Chinoiserie” furniture that incorporated Asian motifs became popular in Europe. However, bamboo was too fragile for heavier European furniture, so companies began creating faux bamboo furniture using hardwoods. This period also saw a shift in the attitude toward childhood. Instead of treating children as miniature adults, children (at least those fortunate enough to be born into the more affluent or rising middle class), were seen as innocent beings who must be gently guided and educated, often through play. Little girls were encouraged to play with dolls in order to learn how to sew, keep house, and prepare for motherhood. German and French companies provided these little girls not only with fine quality lady dolls of bisque and china, but also all the necessary accessories, including doll-sized furniture reflecting the popular styles of the day, such as faux bamboo. The French company Choumer and Collet began making doll furniture in 1867 and later contracted with the American toy store FAO Schwarz. Faux bamboo doll furniture was exhibited at the 1900 Paris Exposition. 

Toy armoires, like this one, featured mirrored doors, as well as shelves for storing doll clothing and linen.

The doll versions reproduced in miniature all the details of the full-sized furnishings, such as beveled mirrors and elaborate drawer pulls.

This diminutive dressing table features a white marble top, a swivel mirror, and even racks on the sides for holding towels. 

The night stand has a cabinet for secreting the chamberpot. 

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

3936-205, 206, 207

Secret Your Stash in Style!

Which is just what you can do with this vintage teak bookcase with the stylish simplicity of Danish modern design.

With a gentle tug, the bookcase swings smoothly open to reveal a second secret set of shelves. 

There is a little lock, easily hidden behind a shelf of books, so that you can secure your secret stash, be it banned books or your best booze and barware. The key has been lost to time, but your local locksmith could provide a replacement (or we might find a fit in the coffee can full of miscellaneous keys in our Estate Department). 

There is no secret where this beautiful bookcase was made, as on the back it carries a gold foil sticker declaring "Made in Denmark."

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

230-10565

 

Mid-Century Marvel from Martinsville

The epitome of America mid-century modern design, this incredible credenza or china cabinet contrasts the natural beauty of golden glowing wood with accents of white laminate. American mid-century modern was a significant design movement stretching from 1945 through the 1960s. Influenced by European movements such as the German Bauhaus school and Scandinavian design, mid-century modern is characterized by the simplicity of its style, the extensive use of natural materials, and the lack of unnecessary embellishment, with an emphasis on craftsmanship and clean, uncluttered silhouettes. The combination of natural and man-made materials is also typical of mid-century modern.  With its compact size and stylish lines, this collectable piece of fine furniture would enhance any decor. 

Inside one of the drawer, this striking piece carries the mark of American of Martinsville. 

The back of the piece carries the model number and the designation "China," no doubt meaning it was intended as a hutch or cabinet to display your fine china or treasured trinkets.

American of Martinsville was founded in Martinsville, Virginia by former tobacco producers Ancil Witten and Charles Keesee in 1906. Sensing that the tobacco market was changing as large concerns such as R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company were expanding across the country, the two men turned manufacturing bedroom furniture under the name the American Furniture Company. By the 1920s, the company was offering a wider range of furniture, In the 1950s, now operating as American of Martinsville, it offered a variety of furniture styles, hiring in-house designers to keep up with current trends. The company gained a reputation for fine craftsmanship and sophisticated design.  It also began producing furniture for the hospitality market. 

In 2000, American of Martinsville was purchased by La-Z-Boy Incorporated, which sold it six years later. Today, the company is belongs to the Akin Furniture Group, a family-owned business in Arkansas that specializes in furniture for the hospitality and healthcare industries.  

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

3-18688

What a Gem!

 Is what you'll say when you see this joyous, jewel-encrusted purse from Texas designer Enid Collins.

The terrific tote also has a sturdy wood bottom. 

Born in 1918 and growing up in San Antonio, Enid majored in fashion design at Texas Woman’s University. She married Frederic Collins, a sculptor, in 1941. After World War II, they purchased a ranch near Medina, Texas. The first purses Enid designed were leather and brass creations made as gifts for friends or as souvenirs for local dude ranches. In 1946, Neiman Marcus began to carry the bags. Two years later, the company "Collins of Texas" was incorporated. The all-leather bags were pricey, so Enid also began producing more affordable canvas totes trimmed in leather. As orders poured in, in 1959, the Collins opened a factory in Medina. In the early sixties, Enid introduced a unique purse made from a wooden box. Her whimsical designs featured bright silkscreened images garnished with glittering jewels, golden coins, and gleaming brass. 

All of the purses designed by Enid feature her name or her initials, "EC," as found on this bag.

 

In 1970, the Collins divorced and Enid sold her copyrighted designs to the leather company, Tandy. Although Tandy continued to make bags through the 1970s, the company used only the "Collins" name or "C."

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

57-1875

Golden Glow

This handblown art glass vase seems to glow with a golden light. This type of iridescent glass is called favrile glass and it is created by adding metal oxides to molten glass. The process was patented by Louis Comfort Tiffany in 1894. Unlike other iridescent glass of the time, the glowing colors were incorporated in the glass and the piece would not lose its luster. Tiffany won a grand prize at the 1900 Paris Exposition for his favrile glass.

The unusual undulating shape is called jack-in-the-pulpit, because it resembles a flower of the same name. Although Tiffany did not create the shape, he called it jack-in-the-pulpit in his catalogs and the name came to be used for all similarly-shaped vases.

This piece is not by Tiffany, but modern American artist Steven V. Correia. Born in 1949 in San Diego, Correia has been an important figure in contemporary American art glass. In 1973, he founded Correia Art, a family-owned studio renown for using traditional glass-making techniques to create new innovative designs. In addition to his handblown glass pieces, Correia also has experimented with large-scale environmental kinetic light sculptures combining laser light, movement, and illusion. His art glass works are found in private and public collections throughout the world, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Corning Museum, the Smithsonian Institution,  and the Chrysler Museum of Art. In 1984, he was honored for his extraordinary accomplishments as an artist with the naming of Steven V. Correia Junior High School in San Diego. 

Under the vase's base is Correia's round paper label, as well as his etched signature. Some earlier owner also added a handwritten note "Correia Vase."

All posted items are for sale as Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

16883-3